Fall 2014 Newsletter

Hello Members of the Nonprofit and Foundations Topical Interest Group (fondly known as NPFTIG)!

The leadership team has been brainstorming ways to improve your experience with the TIG, and we know that better communication is at the top of the list. To that end, moving forward, we are hoping to send out three newsletters a year-one pre-conference (early fall), one before proposals are due (late winter), and one in the summer.

If you are going to be in Denver for Eval 14, please join us at the TIG business meeting and first-ever networking event! More information about both is below.

Contact information for the TIG leadership is also below-please reach out to us if you have any questions, concerns or feedback as we work to improve our TIG!

Best,

Aimee White & Laura Beals (business co-chairs)
Claire Sterling & Marcus Martin (program co-chairs)
Dean Nelson (webmaster)

NPFTIG Week on AEA365

At the end of September the NPFTIG is sponsoring a week on AEA365! Look out for fabulous posts by TIG members Gretchen Shanks from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, consultant Patti Patrizi, Kamilah Henderson from the Skillman Foundation, Trina Willard of the Knowledge Advisory Group, Patrick Germain from Project Renewal, and Claire Sterling from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). Many thanks to Kamilah and Trina for serving as our editors!

Evaluation 2014: Denver, CO

NPFTIG Sponsored Sessions

We have sponsored 30 sessions at this year's conference! To see the complete listing, visit the online conference program and under the "Track" drop-down, select "Nonprofits and Foundations."

We are happy to be co-sponsoring a Presidential Strand panel session: "Creating Equitable and Sustainable Communities: A Systems & Collective Approach to Evaluating Place-Based Initiatives" on Friday October 17 from 4:30-5:15pm in Centennial C. Panelists include Hallie Preskill (FSG), Efrain Gutierrez (FSG), Kelly Hannum (Green Valley Consulting, LLC), and Claire Reinelt (Leadership Learning Community). Visit the online conference program for additional information about this exciting session!

Business Meeting

Our business meeting is scheduled for Thursday, October 16 from 3:00-4:30pm in room 702 (please check the schedule when you get there, though, as things may change). Can we get a "woot-woot" for it not being in the wee hours of the morning as it has been in the past?! At the meeting we will be presenting membership data, discussing strategy, sharing opportunities for involvement in TIG leadership, and allowing time for networking!

Most importantly, though, we are excited to have a panel discussion featuring some of the authors of the 2nd Edition of Empowerment Evaluation by David M. Fetterman and Shakeh J. Kaftarian of Fetterman & Associates and Abraham Wandersman of the University of South Carolina. This book presents insights by notable evaluators from academia, government, nonprofits, and foundations on how empowerment evaluation has evolved and been implemented since the previous edition's publication in 1996. Drs. Fetterman and Wandersman represent the Collaborative, Participatory, and Empowerment Evaluation TIG, a group we continue to support and partner with often. For more information about the CP&E TIG, read its most recent newsletter.

We will have light refreshments for you to enjoy! We look forward to seeing you at the business meeting, and for those who aren't able to attend Eval 14 this year, we will be sure to share the materials after the conference.

Networking Event

This year we are happy to announce that we have organized a networking event! On Thursday evening (October 16), we have made reservations for 7:30pm at several restaurants near the conference center. Each restaurant will have a different "affinity topic" assigned to it so that you can meet with other nonprofit and foundation folks interested in similar issues! This is intended to be a fun, informal evening! Please do note that each individual will be responsible for the cost of his/her drinks/dinner.

To reserve a slot at a restaurant, please visit our Eventbrite page. While the "tickets" are free, only a limited number (15) are available for each restaurant, so please sign up early! We will be closing registration after the business meeting at 5pm. If you have any questions about the networking event, please contact Laura Beals at lbeals@gmail.com.

Service Project

A conference service project that that will benefit the homeless families and individuals served byThe Samaritan House Homeless Shelteris being scheduled for Eval 14. TIG members are asked to donate unused toiletries from their hotel for the drive. TIG support for this project includes: Social Network Analysis, Nonprofits and Foundations, Health, Social Work and Human Services.More information about this great project will be available at the conference.

UPCOMING NPFTIG Leadership openings

In January, we will have openings for two leadership positions in the TIG: Marcus Martin will be ending his term as program co-chair (TIG program co-chairs support the conference submission and review process) and Aimee White, business co-chair, has been elected to the AEA Board (congratulations, Aimee!). Many thanks to Aimee and Marcus for their years of service to our TIG! After the conference we will be sending out a call for nominations and the election will occur in mid-December. If you are interested in running for a TIG leadership position, please be on the lookout for that nomination announcement (self-nominations are welcome!) and do let us know if you have any questions!

The npftig Website

In case you were not aware, the NPFTIG does have a website: http://comm.eval.org/nonprofits/Home/. We are working on improvements so bear with us!

NPFTIG Leadership Contact Information

We welcome questions and comments; our contact information is below:

Laura Beals: lbeals@gmail.com | @laurabeals
Aimee White: aimee@customevaluation.com
Claire Sterling: claire.sterling@aspca.org
Marcus Martin: mmartin@2mresearchservices.com
Dean Nelson: den@pitt.edu